June 2, 2014

A Summer Chapter Book List for Kids

Hey friends! After posting last week's Summer Reading list for grownups (A MUST READ, i tell you! my husband helped me edit, which proved vastly entertaining), a blog pal asked me if I could create a list detailing books that 8 year old Julia and I might be reading this summer. Ask, and you will definitely receive from me! Some of these Julia has already read on her own recently, and some we will be reading together this summer.

1) Julia just finished reading 'Half Magic' By Edward Eager. She checked it out from the library and she ADORED it. (Strangely, I already owned 'Magic by the Lake', which is the sequel, but I didn't own this one.) The gist of this vintage classic is that a group of siblings find a magical coin, which grants wishes...BY HALVES. It only grants half a wish at a time, so you have to wish for double what you really are aiming to get. This of course, creates chaos. Oh and there's a talking cat! When people talk about this book, it's in phrases like, 'the best story I read during my childhood'.

2) We've already covered a ton of Roald Dahl in our house, but 'The Witches' has yet to be read. Not much I can say other than I really hope you all are steadily plowing your way through Dahl's material. Among the best, funniest, unique children's books of all time -- ALL of Roald Dahl's books. 'The Witches' is about a little boy who stumbles into an evil, cackling, child-hating group of witches at the hotel he and his granny are visiting, and well....a whole lot of crazy awesome happens. Wow do these witches hate children! I looooove this book. Pretty sure Julia will as well.

3) Julia discovered 'Bone' at her school library and she loved this one too. 'Bone' is a series of graphic novels about a little bone boy who has epic adventures which involve villainous rats, run-ins with dragons, and other entanglements with a random assortment of odd friends and foes. One of the great comic series of all time, definitely worth a look.

4) I've been holding onto 'The Land of Green Ginger' for a couple of years, waiting for the right time to read it with Julia. Now's the time! It's a vintage classic written by none other than the screenwriter for 'The Wizard of Oz' film. The story furthers the tale of Alladin, now the Emperor of China, and a father to a son named Abu Ali. It's the boy's destiny to save a magician who created the Land of Green
Ginger (a wondrous floating garden) - and who accidentally turned himself
into a turtle.

The story has been described as 'the best children's book you've never read'. I CANNOT WAIT to get started on this ~ magic carpets, phoenixes, dragons, and a character named 'Boomalakka Wee' - who is the offspring of the original Genie of the lamp!

5) A good friend gave a big thumbs up to the Dragon Keepers series, and Julia just read 'The Dragon in the Sock Drawer' by Kate Klimo last week. AND FLIPPED OVER IT. She's begging for the next book. She went on and on describing the discovery of a lost little dragon and the kids who must learn to care for the little creature (dragons need calcium!). Great for ages 8-11.

6) And last, but by no means least, THIS IS THE SUMMER we read 'Stuart Little'. I don't even know what to say about the greatness of this book. This is one of The 10. As in the top 10 books you should not leave let your kids leave childhood without reading. Possibly even one of The 5? For me, this is one of the greatest children's books ever written. It spoke directly to my soul when I first read it as a child, and it has never ever left my adoration for a second. I love it better than 'Charlotte's Web' (same author/illustrator combo). This tale of a little mouse who grows up in New York City, but then hits the open road in search of his best friend ~ it's......a perfect book, and it might be one of only a small handful of books upon which I heap this much praise.

4 comments:

Good thing you posted about this. My son is starting summer vacation at the end of this week and I need to get some books for his summer reading! he loves dragons and Stuart Little so I hope to get him interested in those at least!

We did our library program last yr too! J was totally sure she'd win the tablet they were randomly giving away -- sadly that did not come to pass, but we got a cool seed bookmark thing that you could plant :)

Meet Melissa

I'm the creator of Julia's Bookbag and Julia's Book Boxes. Ask me about ordering the current book surprise box! Vintage, current, and unique book finds are my passion, along with treats, teas, and all things cozy.